Diet Soda Drinkers Not Safe From Heart Disease Risk
Having an additional daily serving of sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) was associated with a 16% increased risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), according to a recent meta-analysis.
The analysis included reviews collected from PubMed, EMbase, and the Chochrane Library Database with reported relative risks (RR) of CHD for different categories of SSBs. Researchers analyzed the data using random-effects models, which compared the highest and lowest categories of SSB consumption by their relation to risk of CHD.
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From 173,753 participants obtained from 4 studies, 7396 CHD cases were included in the meta-analysis. A comparison of the highest and lowest categories of SSBs produced a pooled RR (95% CI) value of 1.17 (1.07-1.28). A significant association was determined for men but not for women.
While the analysis suggests consumption of SSBs may increase the risk of CHD, especially in men, the findings were based on limited studies. The researchers conclude further studies need to be done to more accurately determine the association between SSBs and CHD.
A separate, recently-conducted study analyzed diet drink intake and cardiovascular health in approximately 60,000 postmenopausal women. Women who consumed 2 or more diet beverages per day were found to be 30% more likely to have a cardiovascular event and 50% more likely to die from related heart disease than women who never or only rarely consumed diet drinks.
The primary outcome, a composite of incident CHD, congestive heart failure, heart attack, coronary revascularization procedure, ischemic stroke, peripheral arterial disease, and cardiovascular death, was determined in women who consumed 2 or more diet drinks per day, 5 to 7 diet drinks per day, 1 to 4 diet drinks per week, and 0 to 3 diet drinks per month to be 8.5%, 6.9%, 6.8%, and 7.2%, respectively.
The association remained present after researchers adjusted the data to account for demographic characteristics and other cardiovascular risk factors. Women who drank more than 2 diet drinks per day were more likely to be younger, smokers, have a higher prevalence of diabetes, high blood pressure, and higher body mass index.
Similar to the first study discussed, the researchers concluded more studies need to be conducted to further define the association between diet beverages and an increased risk of heart disease. – Sarah O’Brien
- Huang C, Huang J, Tian Y, Gu D. Sugar sweetened beverages consumption and risk of coronary heart disease: A meta-analysis of prospective studies. Atherosclerosis. 2014 Mar; 234(1); 11-16.
- American College of Cardiology. Too many diet drinks may spell heart trouble for older women [press release]. Washington, DC; March 29 ,2014. http://www.cardiosource.org/en/News-Media/Media-Center/News-Releases/2014/03/Vyas-Diet-Drinks.aspx